Cell phones have become an indispensable part of many people's daily lives. People rely on their cell phones for a variety of purposes, including communicating with friends and family, managing email accounts, banking, social networking and scheduling/planning daily activities. Given the importance of cell phones to modern life, it is essential that cell phones are operating at maximum efficiency and have a charged battery at all times.
Unfortunately, cell phone batteries often need to be recharged at the end of the day, and depending upon the frequency of use, the cell phone battery may not last throughout the day. Cell phone battery technology is limited, particularly because of the design and size restraints required for modern day cellphones. Due to these restraints, a cell phone battery may not provide adequate battery life for a device. Additionally, over the life of a cell phone or tablet, the battery life diminishes in its capacity to hold charge, leading to charging the battery more frequently. Many cell phone users have also resorted to buying spare batteries, buying new phones, or carrying bulky chargers which can be both expensive and cumbersome. Thus, many people must travel with battery chargers, which can easily be lost or forgotten.
Solar cell systems for charging the batteries of electronic devices such as mobile phones, tablets, music devices, and laptops and many other related battery charging products are typically provided as separate units that connect to the battery powered device by means of a cable or adapter. The solar charger is therefore a separate item to the portable device. Some solar cell systems integrate or attach solar charging cells to a dock or holster into which the device can be placed. Once the device is within the dock/holster an electrical connection is made between the device and the case so as to charge the internal battery. However, these configurations usually prevent the portable device from being used in the conventional manner as intended by the device manufacturer. Current solar chargers are known to be bulky and render the device less portable. These configurations also require action on the user's part to begin charging, either by activating the charger or plugging the charger into the device.
It would therefore be useful to provide a solar powered case configured in such a way that it would not have to be considered as a separate item and it would not add significant size or weight to the portable device. The proposed invention would allow the portable device to be charged without the user having to consider commencing the charging and without having to carry extra equipment together with the device. It would also allow the portable device's battery to be charged even while the device is being operated by the user. Additionally, the proposed invention would indicate the strength of a light source used to power the solar panels, thus allowing users to find an adequate light source for keeping the battery charged.